Tales of a Tesla in Tampa

Will my next car be a Tesla? Maybe not.

For the first 2 years of owning a Tesla, you've heard me on this podcast talk about why I love the car.  The self driving.  The lack of maintenance.  All those things most EV owners love. But would I buy another Tesla?  Hopefully it's not something I'll have to worry about for a long time.  My car is only 2 years old.  But it may surprise you to hear that my next electric vehicle may not have a Tesla logo on it.   

How much money do you save driving an EV instead of paying for gas?

Thanks to Dave in Largo for letting me know I forgot to do the breakdown of charging costs on the last episode.  I talked about how Gulfport has done away with free EV charging.  They now charge 30 cents per kilowatt hour.  But what does that mean?  If you're new to EVs, you probably are curious how much money you'll save if you go electric.  There are 3 scenarios.  Obviously, if you have a spot to charge for free near your home, you're saving lots. But...

My favorite EV charging spot in Pinellas is no longer free

Is free EV free charging going to become a thing of the past?  One of my 2 favorite spots in Pinellas County to charge up for free is no more.  I loved plugging in at the Gulfport police station and then wandering around Gulfport to explore the bars, restaurants and chill out to enjoy the water.  But as of November 1, there's now a charge according to The Gabber (a local St. Pete newspaper).

Does driving a Tesla make you hot?

I learned the answer to that question last night driving home from my Tampa radio show.  Something happened on the drive that made me panic a little bit.  But then I found out, that at least one of my body parts is still hot.  Pull up a chair ladies.

After owning a Tesla for 14 months, it finally happened

What finally happened? Did I finally discover something about EV life that's going to send me back to an old fashioned gas car?  Did my car catch on fire like you see on the TV news?  Did Elon Musk finally say something dumb enough to make me hand over my key card in disgust?You'll have to listen and find out.  Thinking of getting a Tesla? Use my referral code: EUGENE813022

It's been 1 year since I bought my first Tesla... do I regret it?

It's been months since I've done a new episode of this podcast.  Why?  Did I get rid of my Tesla?  Was everyone right... do I regret buying an EV?  Has my car caught on fire yet?  If the answer to all of these questions is no, why DID I stop making new episodes?

7 Downtown Tampa Parking Garages with Free EV Charging

If you’re going to a Lightning game or some other event at Amalie Arena, walking the Riverwalk, heading to Gasparilla, visiting the Florida Aquarium or having a cigar in Ybor City, you have 7 city owned public garages that offer free electric vehicle charging.

5 Questions from my Tampa radio listeners about switching to a Tesla

Since ditching my gas guzzler and buying my first electric vehicle, I've had friends and listeners ask the same 4 or 5 questions.  Do you really save money?  How is it driving one compared to a normal car?  How do I charge the car?  What's the cost to "fill up" at those Wawa superchargers?  How does someone who's 6'4" fit in a tiny Tesla Model 3?  And what will I do when the Tesla catches on fire?  Because ya know... that happens ALL the time. 

Review: Carsmetics in Clearwater’s body work on my Tesla Model 3

After rocks came flying at my brand new Tesla Model 3 on the Howard Frankland Bridge, I had repair work done at Carsmetics on Ulmerton Road in Clearwater.  The damage came out to almost $2,000.  How did it look?  Did I have to pay or did the construction company out of Lutz that was responsible cut the check?  Are there remnants of the damage or were they able to make it look like new?

The thing I thought I’d dislike about owning a Tesla

For Tesla owners in the Tampa Bay area, owning a Tesla often means a Wawa run... especially if you don't have a way to charge your EV at home.  Filling up an old fashioned gas tank takes less than 5 minutes.  But charging a Tesla can take up to an hour if you're "filling it up" to 100%.   Who has that kind of time?  We live in the instant gratification world of 2023.  Turns out the thing I thought would bug me about owning a Tesla has become one of the many perks.